South China Morning Post World

Hong Kong is mourning the death of Tung Chee-hwa, the city’s first leader after its return to Chinese sovereignty and a respected elder statesman, who died on Tuesday at the age of 89. Tung was surrounded by his family when he “passed away peacefully” at 9.57pm, according to state news agency Xinhua. Tributes and messages of grief poured in on Wednesday from across Hong Kong and mainland China, as well as from overseas, with top officials, politicians, business leaders and others praising his...

Hong Kong’s first chief executive, Tung Chee-hwa, who died on Tuesday, has been lauded as “one of the greatest movers in China-US relations”, with a foundation established by a former American president’s family praising his “profound contributions” to deepening ties between the two nations. The US consulate and former city leader Donald Tsang Yam-kuen also praised Tung’s work in strengthening ties between the United States and Hong Kong, paving the way for deeper business links and high-level..

Hong Kong’s Buildings Department has filed 259 charges against two companies and four individuals over repair works at the inferno-ravaged Wang Fuk Court, after investigations found non-fire-retardant materials were used and safety obligations were not met. The department said on Wednesday that the charges included allegedly permitting or authorising to be used in the carrying out of building works materials which are defective or did not comply with the provisions of the Buildings Ordinance, as

Hong Kong’s medical watchdog has said a target time frame for handling complaints will not be necessary as it presented its rebuttal against a government proposal that includes major reforms to its operations, disciplinary sentencing, internal supervision and membership make-up. The Medical Council on Tuesday presented its views on the government’s proposed amendments, which were first laid out in late June and aimed to speed up the watchdog’s process and accountability in handling...

Tung Chee-hwa, Hong Kong’s first leader following its return to Chinese sovereignty, has been remembered as a “kind-hearted man” who mentored others and inspired some to take up public office. As tributes poured in for Tung, who died on Tuesday aged 89, people who worked closely with him shared touching anecdotes about the man they said cared deeply about Hong Kong even in the years after he stepped down as chief executive in 2005. Bernard Chan, chairman of the West Kowloon Cultural District...

Tung Chee-hwa, Hong Kong’s first chief executive who died on Tuesday at the age of 89, kept a low profile in the final years of his life, making only a few public appearances but continuing to help bridge the China-US divide. Wearing a face mask and accompanied by his wife Betty Tung Chiu Hung-ping, Tung visited the South China Morning Post’s headquarters in Causeway Bay on December 1, 2020, to deliver a keynote speech at the China Conference organised by the company. Tung spoke in his...

Digital bank ZA Bank is taking 45,000 square feet (4,181 square metres) across four upper floors at Hysan Development’s Lee Garden Eight for its new headquarters, adding to a wave of financial and technology companies reshaping Causeway Bay’s commercial landscape. The move comes as landlords across the district grapple with a changing property market marked by excess office space. The bank is scheduled to move into Tower 3 in 2027, coinciding with Hysan and partner Chinachem Group completing the

A Hong Kong court has found a 24-year-old man not guilty of committing a spate of sexual offences against his younger sister a decade ago, ruling that prosecutors failed to prove the defendant knew what he did as a teenager was seriously wrong. A High Court jury of five men and two women acquitted the defendant on Thursday of four counts of incest and three of indecent conduct towards a child under 16. The verdict came at the direction of the presiding judge, who concluded that the charges could

Hong Kong’s first astronaut Lai Ka-ying has conducted a live lesson for students of her alma mater from the Tiangong space station, showing them how chicken wings are cooked in zero gravity and how she locates the city’s lights from the darkness of space. In a livecast to teachers and students of Tsuen Wan Public Ho Chuen Yiu Memorial College on Wednesday that was also streamed at other campuses across Hong Kong and Macau, Lai offered a glimpse of life in orbit and the experiments her team...

Biomedicine is set to feature in Hong Kong’s first five-year plan, due to be unveiled next week, as the city’s top officials signal closer medical cooperation across the Greater Bay Area. Lending weight to those ambitions, global pharmaceutical company GSK emphasised its interest in expanding its role in the region’s biotech development on Wednesday, at the fifth Hong Kong International Biotechnology Conference and Exhibition (BIOHK). Speaking at the event, Hong Kong Secretary for Health Lo...

Kazakhstan has signed a memorandum of understanding with Hong Kong’s transport authorities to establish a laboratory and discussed low-altitude economy initiatives to help manage traffic jams. Bakhtiyar Mukhametkaliyev, Kazakhstan’s vice-minister of artificial intelligence and digital development, told the South China Morning Post on Wednesday about discussions with the team of Hong Kong’s Secretary for Transport and Logistics Mable Chan on the sidelines of the Belt and Road Summit in the...

Former Hong Kong lawmaker William Wong Kam-fai, who resigned after an alleged drink-driving incident, has been given two months to consider his plea on four traffic offences. Wong, 66, was not required to enter a plea during his first appearance at Sha Tin Court on Wednesday. Defence lawyer Paul Tse Wai-chun, also a former legislator, sought a nine-week adjournment to allow time for legal advice. Magistrate Raymond Wong Kwok-fai set the next hearing for November 11. A computer scientist by...

Hong Kong will continue to serve as a gateway linking belt and road economies with mainland China and global markets, the chief executive has said, underscoring the city’s role in bringing together capital, talent and businesses to advance the national initiative. Speaking at the opening of the annual Belt and Road Summit on Wednesday, John Lee Ka-chiu said more than 60 government and business agreements and memorandums of understanding (MOUs) would be signed during the event, with the total...

Hong Kong’s first astronaut, Lai Ka-ying, will deliver a live lesson from space to students and teachers at her alma mater on Wednesday morning, with the 90-minute event broadcast to campuses across the city and streamed live on television. Lai and her two fellow Shenzhou-23 crew members – mission commander Colonel Zhu Yangzhu and Zhang Zhiyuan – will take part in the “Tiangong Class” at Tsuen Wan Public Ho Chuen Yiu Memorial College. Representatives from the youth sector and innovation and...

Tung Chee-hwa, Hong Kong’s first chief executive who oversaw the city’s 1997 return to Chinese rule, has died. According to a statement from his office issued in the early hours on Wednesday, he died on Tuesday at the age of 89, surrounded by his loved ones. It is understood that he died at the Hong Kong Sanatorium & Hospital. Tung was also a vice-chairman of China’s top political advisory body, the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference. In this live blog, the South China Morning...

Some Hong Kong employment and travel companies have warned that air traffic in Jakarta could continue to face disruptions even after the Indonesian capital’s international airport reopened following a volcanic eruption that spewed ash into the sky, as airlines work through a backlog. GLC (Manado) Employment Service founder and director Chu Shek-yin told the South China Morning Post that he would not rush to book an air ticket for his client’s helper despite the resumption of operations at all...

A shipping tycoon who was thrust onto the international stage as Hong Kong’s first chief executive and went on to become an elder statesman and consummate diplomat, Tung Chee-hwa will be remembered as a defining figure of the city’s modern history. The legacy of Tung, who died on Tuesday at age 89, is closely tied to his role as a patriot who led Hong Kong through uncharted waters, navigating a stormy post-handover period beset with economic, public health and political crises. With his Shanghai

Hong Kong secondary school students’ performance has fallen in an international assessment focused on three core subjects, with their science score dropping out of the global top 10 for the first time in the study’s history. Experts said on Tuesday that the decline in Hong Kong scores in the Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa) was partly due to the post-Covid impact on study habits and learning motivation. Held every three years, Pisa is a worldwide study by the Organisation...

A cluster comprising Hong Kong and two mainland Chinese cities has been ranked the world’s top innovation hub for the second consecutive year by a United Nations body. The Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou cluster retained its crown in the 2026 Global Innovation Index released by the World Intellectual Property Organization on Tuesday. Tokyo-Yokohama, San Jose-San Francisco, Seoul and Beijing followed in the rankings. A government spokesman welcomed the ranking, saying it reaffirmed the Greater Bay..

Hong Kong’s rail operator has reported a suspected mass fare evasion incident to police after online footage showed more than 30 people tailgating through barriers at Tsim Sha Tsui station, with no station staff seen intervening. A viral video last week appeared to show a woman, believed to be a tour guide, tap her card at an exit gate in Tsim Sha Tsui station. As the gates opened, several men and women following her passed through in single file without tapping their own cards, causing the gate